Here and Gone
by shewhomutters
Summary: Tenzin and Lin begin their journey as a couple, only to have it wracked with tragedy. Relationships: Linzin, Toph and Lin momma-daughter.


"Ouch!" Tenzin yells. Rubbing his nine-year-old head where Lin hit him with a pebble.

"Stay alert, stay alive, Baldy" She says laughing. Tenzin turns red, this game annoys him. He gets welts all over his body from the earth that constantly makes contact with his skin... all at the hands of a girl! As much as Tenzin hates the game, Lin loves it. Mostly because she always wins.

But this time it's different. This time, Tenzin is going to beat her.

Creating an airball, he hoists himself up into the nearest willow tree. She is looking for him, but can't quite find where he is.

"Quit hiding, Tenzin! You're such a scaredy cat!" He knows he can't hide from Lin, not for long anyways. She is approaching the tree.

"Fine! I'll just have to try this without shoes and then you'll be sorry," she says teasingly. Tenzin sees her little head appear under the eaves. The black curls bounce around as she sits down and begins tugging at her sandals. Now is his chance.

With all the air in his lungs, Tenzin lets out a warrior cry that would surely make his Uncle Sokka proud. The little airbender launches himself out of the tree. His aim; those curls.

"OOF, Ten!" She screeches. He has gotten her finally. The two kids struggle in their heap on the ground, trying to each best the other. But Tenzin has grown, he is getting bigger than Lin, and heavier. She's doomed. He sits on her chest and pins her arms down, grinning from ear to ear. Her retaliations are, for once, no match for the boy.

"Let me go!" She squeals as Tenzin laughs.

"I got you! I got you!" He has his face near hers, noses almost touching. "Say you're an elephant coy!"

The little girl sets her teeth and still continues to struggle.

"Say it!"

"Never! _You're_ the elephant coy!" Her emerald eyes flash dangerously. Tenzin had never really realized how much he actually liked the color green until that moment. It is almost enough to let her go, those eyes. But he keeps her pinned there, and waits. Patience is his gift.

"Say you're an elephant coy."

"Never!"

"Say it."

"YOU SAY IT!"

"Kids? What are you doing?" Katara run out to the yard, followed by Toph. "Tenzin! Let her go immediately! That is no way to treat a young lady!"

Toph just laughs. "Well, if my baby's a lady, I'm the Fire Lord!"

"Just try it."

"No, Lin we're not allowed!"

"Listen, Feathers. You're the only person I want to try this with. I could go get Kya if I really wanted to. But I don't want to drink with Kya, she's already done it before. Besides, she's so much older than me. Not easy to relate to. So don't be a chicken and help me out here."

Tenzin purses his lips. Drinking alcohol was strictly forbidden, for the teenagers and especially for the Airbenders. But something Lin said about only wanting to drink with himself seems an irresistible honor on Tenzin's part. He has been enamored with the earthbender since as long as he can remember. So he takes a seat next to her on the grass in a dark corner of the vast training areas on Airtemple island. He can tell Lin is grinning. She pats him on the head and hands him the bottle.

"Good boy!"

"If my parents find out, I am so dead."

She kisses him on his cheek. Tenzin turns bright red.

"Relax, Ten. You're not a monk _yet_."

It's a year later and now Tenzin is finally eighteen. Now he has become a man. The new arrow tattoos extending to his limbs and head are evidence of that. He acts differently now, more confident. His mission to live up to his ink is already underway.

Lin stands in the shade of the temple, watching him do his work with the air alcolytes. She watches him giving instructions, shaking hands, playing with the children. Young women flirt with him with no avail as he does not acknowledge their attempts.

He notices her watching and his heart, for what seems like the millionth time today, swells to unimaginable proportions. It's because he knows what he wants now, who he wants, why he wants her.

Lin...

Tenzin makes his way over to her. As usual, shes smirking. She has her arms crossed over her training uniform. Head resting against the wall she observes him saunter over confidently.

Once Tenzin has gotten rolling there is no stopping him. So he approaches the girl of his dreams, and he gets comfortably close, towering over her, leaning with her against the wall, casting yet more of a shadow on her face. He just looks at her, and she glances up at him, eyebrows raised, amused. His question is light, breathy like a whisper of air.

"Will you go out with me tonight?"

And she who has been waiting for this finds herself losing the air in her body. So she knows her answer and the million ways in which she can express it tumble around inside her head. The lack of oxygen in addition to the frantic indecision on how exactly to react make her feel a little weak.

She nods.

Tenzin laughs now, flashing his teeth. He's finally got her stumped on something.

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

And Lin rolls her eyes and pushes off of the wall and puts her fingers delicately on his chest, right over his heart.

"I said YES." She's looking at him dead on and his heart pumps faster. She can feel it. He pulls away, feeling giddy. But just as he's about to go, he brushes a mangled curl out of her face and tucks it behind her ear.

"Great!" He says. "I'll see you tonight then..."

"See you tonight." She says. Then he's walking away, literally floating on air, feeling like the happiest 18-year-old in Republic City.

And she can still feel the quick paced rhythm of his heart.

It's twilight and Tenzin goes to find her. She's at her house, sitting in the garden with her mom.

"Lin, I'm still shocked you're going on a date with Tenzin! Twinkletoes' kid," she starts laughing, holding her daughter around the waist, running her fingers through her Lin's hair, getting the last few knots out.

"Mother," she sighs. "I'm so nervous... I don't even know how to act around him anymore." She's got her head on her mom's shoulder. Toph continues to stroke it and laugh.

"Doesn't matter, baby. You'll wow him." She says. "You look lovely."

Lin rolls her eyes.

"Mom, you can't see me!" They both laugh and Toph pushes her daughter to her feet.

"Yes, but you're also a Beifong. The Beifong women are lovely by definition." Lin blushes and grins.

"You certainly are, Mum." Toph gives her a tight hug.

"Thanks, baby. Now I gotta go back to work. Your male visitor has arrived... I love you," She plants a kiss on her daughter's head. "BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT, TENZIN!" She yells and stalks away as Tenzin lands in the courtyard, smiling.

For a minute they just grin at each other foolishly.

"You do look lovely, Lin." Indeed she does. She wears a green silk dress, with gold embroidery. He likes how it hugs her waist, falls to her feet in mesmerizing folds. He likes how it reveals her sharp collarbones and how the long sleeves tighten comfortably around her toned arms. She stares down at her toes.

"Do you think so? Is this a little much?" She twirls and the dress floats up around her legs. Her eyes twinkle at the sensation. He stops her and holds her forearms.

"No, no it's not. It's perfect."

"Good, because I'd have worn this stinking dress for nothing."

Hours after a wonderful dinner, dancing, and a ride through the night sky on Oogie, Lin is home. She lies in bed thinking about the night she'd had with Tenzin. It was different than what she was used to. They both seemed out of character, but in a good way. Tenzin was his normal, chivalrous, polite, honorable self. But he showed a sort of soft passion tonight that was different to what Lin normally saw. Lin was smitten. She had remained for the most part of the night herself. But she had simply been a different side of herself, the side that was less scathing. She hadn't attacked him with words like she normally would... or earthbended pebbles at his head.

There was a moment, they were sitting together on Oogie while he showed her how to steer. She had glanced over the bison at the earth to see how far they were from the ground. Toph never liked Lin riding sky bison, now Lin understood why. She was terrified, but exhilarated at the same time, a feeling that made her nervous. Tenzin had noticed. He put his arm around her waist, holding her securely to him. Lips to her ear, he cured her of all fears of flying right then and there.

"I won't let you fall."

She liked that feeling. The feeling that she didn't have to hold herself up. She had someone she could rely on, make her feel safe. A friend, a love. And she hadn't wanted to lose that feeling. It seemed, neither did Tenzin...

"Lin," she hears a whisper from outside of her window. Slipping out of bed she draws aside the softly billowing curtains.

"Feathers, what are you doing here? My mom could be home any moment..."

"Great!" He says. "She's not here."

Faster than a lemur, Tenzin airbends himself into Lin's window. She backs up, annoyed.

"Ten! Get out of here, we're rubble if she finds you."

"What's this now? The metalbender wants me out? I thought you'd welcome me in after what went on with us tonight."

Lin sets her hands on her hips.

"What went on with us?" She questions defensively.

"Oh... I- I thought you liked me too..." He falters, feeling a little stupid he took the trip from the Island in the middle of the night, just to see her like this.

Her eyes widen. She hadn't meant to put him down like that.

"No, no, Tenzin. I do like you! I _really_ like you, Ten." She grabs his hand, interlacing their fingers. He smiles and gives her a hug, inhaling her scent.

"I really like you too Lin... I- I just came to say something to you right now... I just hope it's not to forward..."

Lin laughs

"Just spit it out, Tenzin," She says.

"Ok, well," Tenzin takes a deep breath. "Lin, I think I love you. Really, I'm in love with you." He pulls back quickly, searching her face. Lin's lips tremble, one second her expressions are totally blank, the next she is embracing him, her face in his neck.. She's laughing... or maybe sobbing...

"Oh no, Lin. I was being too serious... I'm sor-,"

"Oh shut up, Feathers!"

And he knows it is alright. He wraps his arms tighter around her frame, spinning her around her room until they get dizzy and land on her bed. She removes her face from his neck and looks at him tenderly. Soon she is leaning in, the happy tears on her face glistening in the moonlight. He meet her halfway until their lips touch, lightly at first and then the kiss deepens...

They forget how late it is. They forget that Toph should be home soon from work as Police Chief. They forget that if anyone, _anyone_ found them like they were, there would be complete chaos. But they forget all that. They ignore it. It is only Lin and Tenzin for that moment, for the time being.

An hour later, there is a knock at the door. Lin starts, jumping out of Tenzin's arms, waking him up.

"What's wrong?"

"Someone's at the door, you gotta hide!"

She kneels down, scraping up her pajamas, yanking them on hurriedly.

"Eh, if it's not your mom, I'll just be staying here." He yawns and pulls the covers back up.

"_Tenzin!_" She chucks his pants at his face. "_Get UP_."

He finally groans and tugs his clothes on as she rushes out of the room, pulling on her robe. She gets to the door, fixing her hair, expecting Katara or Kya on the doorstep, looking for Tenzin. She pulls it open.

It isn't at all what she had expected. It isn't at all.

There is a teenage boy about her age on her doorstep. An earthbender in training for the police force. She remembers his name as Saikhan. He mostly just acts as a page for the force. He was nice. She talked to him sometimes.

"Miss. Beifong, you have to come down to headquarters, something's happened. It's an emergency!"

"Why? What happened?" It's Tenzin. He appears behind Lin in the doorway. Saikhan eyes him and his half-nakedness curiously, shooting the airbender a glare.

"It's confidential," he begins, turning back to Lin. "But it's about your mother, you must come quickly!"

Suddenly struck by panic, Lin spins around, pushing Tenzin back into the house.

"Wait a second, I'll be right there." She sprints to her room as fast as she can, ditching her pajamas on the floor. She throws open her closet, revealing the new police suit she just received from her mother. Bending it on, she doesn't wait for Tenzin to follow her out the door.

"Lin!" They have arrived at the Hospital. Avatar Aang is waiting for them. "Come quickly."

Lin is frantic as the three of them approach him in the lobby.

"What's happened? Where's my mom?" she asks him. Aang shoots a questioning look at Tenzin before taking Lin's arm and guiding her by the small of her back to the intensive care unit.

"Your mother was investigating a small gang violence case on the outskirts. Well, she thought it was small. When she went to go take over... well... there were just too many of them."

Lin's eyes widen.

"Was she... was she hurt?"

Aang's face is grim, he leads her into the nearest room. What Lin sees almost brakes her resolve. Her mother lies in the hospital bed, broken, bruised and mangled. Katara hovers over her friend, the healing water glowing on her palms. She looks up as she works to acknowledge Lin. Aang lowers the shaking girl into a seat beside her mother. Lin touches her mother's hand, it is cold. She can vaguely feel her mother's pulse. Faint and irregular. The total opposite of how Lin perceives her mom.

"Who did this to her?" Aang looks at the teenager with a weak grimace on his face.

"There was a man, he got her from behind with a bolt of electricity. Her metal armor didn't help her at all."

"A firebender?" She asks, shocked.

"No, Lin. Someone else, a nonbender no doubt. He had a sort of rod that electrocuted anything it touched. He only got her though. It seemed like she was specifically targeted. She was mislead into going there without sufficient backup. The man only sought to attack her. I'm sorry I wasn't there, Lin."

"No," she tells him. "Don't blame yourself."

That is it. When the panic and the fear finally gets too much for her Lin closes her doors. She refuses to speak to anyone. She just grips her mother's hand and stares down at the only person she has ever really relied on, willing everything to be alright.

It has gotten to be four in the morning, the sun is beginning to rise in Republic City. Lin still remains by her mother, refusing to move, refusing to do anything. Katara has gone to rest, to be ready for more healing the next day. Toph still lies motionless. Lin had moved to lie beside her hours ago, still holding onto her pulse, deathly afraid that her mother is slipping away every time Lin loses track of the beat. That pulse is her lifeline, and she clings to it like the ocean to the moon.

Tenzin hasn't left either, he enters the hospital room and sits beside Lin.

"You should get some sleep," he tries for the millionth time. "She will be here when you wake up."

Lin just blinks and shakes her head. She's turned on her side to watch her mother's chest rise and fall. To see her blind eyes flicker from behind her eyelids.

"No."

"Lin, please."

"Just leave us alone." Lin grits her teeth. "I-just-need-to-be-with-her."

"Lin, she's going to be okay."

Lin squeezes her eyelids shut, locking the tears inside. How would _he_ know? Lin had been holding on to her mother's heartbeat for hours. He couldn't know what she did.

"Go _away _Tenzin."

It's midnight the next night. Lin barely feels it happen because she can barely feel the beat anyways. It takes her a whole minute to realize that her mother no longer has a pulse. She looks at Toph's face, at the rough laugh lines and light cuts that will never heal.

Lin buries her face in her mom's abdomen and unravels. Her sobs wrack her body and her hands shake. The girl who finds it so easy to control her emotions, who inherits the ability to stand rock-solid in the face of anything, can't control herself.

And the sheets are tear-stained,

And the room is dark,

The girl is warm,

Her mother is cold.

And the unfairness of it all is excruciating. Because Lin knows that although parents shouldn't have to bury their children, only children shouldn't have to bury their only parent. Now, it seems that everything is gone. Toph Beifong was Lin's only real family. Her rock.

And Lin is angry,

So _angry_,

After her tears have dried, the only feeling inside of her that she can describe is rage.

_RAGE_

And she knows what she's about to do before she even does it.

She stands, barefoot, and looks at her mother's face, brushing the long bangs out of her eyes. She plants a kiss on her mom's forehead just like her mother had done not forty-eight hours earlier. Lin is about to leave when she catches something through her seismic sense. Returning to her mother's side. She gently removes the space-rock bracelet from her mother's arm and secures it on her own bicep.

"I love you too, Mom." Lin says before she walks out.

. . .

In the lobby, Tenzin is sitting on a bench with his head in his hands. He never actually left. Bumi and Kya are with him, trying to convince their brother to come home with them. He lifts his head just in time to see the object of his affections stalk out of the hospital.

"Lin!" He calls.

She starts running.

The three of them are following her, down the steps, out into the street. But they can't find her. She's gone.

. . .

Lin hangs from the top of a building, metal cable securely attached to the brick. It looks as if she's found yet another way to use the metalbending wires to her advantage. But she's not thinking about that. She's surveying the city, working out the place described to her. Deciding her plan of attack. It's windy, cold. She automatically thinks that Aang or Tenzin might have somehow followed her. But no one is there.

_RAGE_

But as she's about to swoop down on her targeted building, something catches her eye. It's a faint blue spark, off in the distance. She squints at it and realizes.

It's the man. He's on a boat. He's headed for Airtemple island.

He's dead meat.

And she releases the wire, letting herself fall to the earth before sending out another that sticks in a different building. She swings and sends out another wire, gaining more ground as she goes.

And she is fast,

And she is deadly,

She is flying, almost like an airbender.

And that spark is her new target.

She's at the docks, seeing the man's boat approach the island. So she acts quickly. She spots another boat with a metal propeller attached to it. Immediately she hops in and bends the propeller into action.

Faster,

_Faster_

She's speeding towards him. She sees the blue spark again. He has almost reached the island.

_Faster._

He's on land. She can see the temple through the haze and she shoots a wire as far as she can at it. It hits the brick and she swings out.

And the man is in the courtyard

and she is in the courtyard.

And she's landed in front of him.

Blue spark.

That blue spark, so close, triggers a fire within Lin that she can't control. She finally unleashes her wrath.

Earth, everywhere. She shoots rubble at the man but he dodges it. He tries to get to her. He sends a bolt of electricity her way but misses her armor, catching her jaw. And she's punching the ground and the whole world quakes just like her whole world has quaked. And the ground comes up and swallows the man to his chest. And she can feel it, she's heightened. She is going to crush him. But she runs up to the man so that he can see her in the faint blue light. She's the furious picture of her mother. And he shits his pants.

And she just laughs, and brings down hell...

"No Lin!"

Tenzin is there, grabbing her, pulling her away from the body. But she's frustrated because she's still trying to make sure that he's dead.

"Let me go, Tenzin! Let me go!" She doesn't realize she's screaming at him. But she hears other voices yelling.

"Tenzin! Hold her, don't let her go! Bumi, help him!"

And the brothers drag her back. And Tenzin pins her down on the ground and she's pounding the earth but he sits on her and catches her arms and interlaces their fingers. Bumi has her legs and Katara is running over. Her hands glow with water as they touch Lin's temples. But she screams and thrashes and tries to fight the wave of calm threatening to take her body.

And she can only barely hear herself, so she screams louder.

"_He killed her! He killed her! Let me finish him!"_

Tenzin is just straddling her, and Bumi is holding on with all of his might. Katara is trying to say soothing words and Lin just gives in because it hurts to feel so conflicted.

The earthbender wimpers and pulls her chin up and closes her eyes and she's done. But the hurt is still there, the damage is there. Bumi is off of her, and then Tenzin. Lin just rolls over and cries, breaking down again. But Tenzin is right there this time, folding her tightly against his chest as she shakes and wails. He stays there and strokes her hair and kisses the tears off of her face.

And they all see what has happened. They all realize.

Aang just sits, his head in his hands, shaking violently. Katara has her hand through his arm and cries silently on his shoulder.

Bumi is there, looking horrified.

Kya sits next to him and mutters to herself, rubbing her eyes furiously.

Everything is at a standstill, illuminated only in blue light. And even that light is erased with the rising of the sun.

A page boy arrives to give the news to Avatar Aang: Police Cheif Toph Beifong has passed.

But Aang already knows. Aang knows because otherwise _her_ daughter wouldn't be sobbing on the ground in the arms of his son.


End file.
